


Astra's Jolly Sailor Bold

by BumbleBeeKisses



Category: Life of the Party D&D (Web Series)
Genre: Family Feels, I was very bored at school one day, Light Angst, M/M, Pining, Singing, so I wrote this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-22
Updated: 2020-11-22
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:14:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,214
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27675887
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BumbleBeeKisses/pseuds/BumbleBeeKisses
Summary: While playing a haunting siren's shanty, Astra thinks about who he is really singing for, and how much he misses him.
Relationships: Astra/Aerenthias Van Wymarck
Kudos: 8





	Astra's Jolly Sailor Bold

**Author's Note:**

> I am Gay, I am Tired, I have nothing to do while waiting for my new notebook to arrive so I can continue my main fanfic, I really like sea shanties and mermaids. It was only a matter of time before I ended up writing something like this.

It was a loud, late night in the tavern they had found themselves in Watcher’s Respite, Astra’s music playing while people tossed coins to him and drank merrily. He was playing a fun song, one he had heard on his travels few years ago, the lyrics telling a tale of three friends, a bold young man who fought fiercely in an arena, a sneaky young enby who could make and destroy you with words alone, and a beautiful young woman who ruled fairly by taking her own advice.

As he finished the song, he had to quickly choose what to play next. He thought for a second, thinking of what would best suit the audience here. He looked around, spotting a young couple, one clearly a sailor and the other seemed to be a local of a high class. He was reminded of another sailor he knew, one who he cared deeply for, and decided on a song almost instantly.

“Upon one summer's morning,  
I carelessly did stray  
Down by the Walls of Wapping,  
Where I met a sailor gay.

Conversing with a young lass  
Who seem’d to be in pain,  
Saying, ‘William, when you go  
I fear you'll ne'er return again.’

My heart is pierced by Cupid  
I disdain all glittering gold  
There is nothing can console me  
But my jolly sailor bold.” 

He thought of that day at the games in Lakeside, the wink he had thrown his direction, the flick of his tail in the tavern, all of it, as he sang out the lyrics. It was getting later into the night, with more people heading to the dark rooms upstairs, and the calmer melody seemed to be appreciated as he was tossed more coins by the people present. Many people spoke happily, words of “mermaid’s song” and “Your sweetheart back home” common as Astra played while thinking about who he was truly singing for.

“His hair it does in ringlets hang  
His eyes as bright as gold  
May happiness attend him  
Wherever he may go.

From Tower Hill to Blackwall  
I will wander, weep and moan  
All for my jolly sailor bold  
Until he sails home.

My heart is pierced by Cupid  
I disdain all glittering gold  
There is nothing can console me  
But my jolly sailor bold.”

He thought of the letter, the button, those messages they had sent back and forth. He wished he could do as the song said; wander, weep and moan while awaiting his return to him. But who was he to want such things? They had barely spoken of such feelings Astra had, which he wished and prayed he reciprocated, and then what if he was only a passing fancy? What if he currently had his arms around someone else, calling them sweet names and kissing them gently? It made Astra’s heart hurt, but he kept singing his song, which he sung for him, though he could not hear all that distance away.

“My father is a merchant  
The truth I now will tell  
And in great Riven City  
In opulence doth dwell.

His fortune doth exceed  
300,000 gold  
And he frowns upon his daughter  
‘Cause she loves a sailor bold.

A fig for his riches  
His merchandise and gold  
True love has grafted my heart  
Give me my sailor bold.

My heart is pierced by Cupid  
I disdain all glittering gold  
There is nothing can console me  
But my jolly sailor bold.”

He thought of his family, back hidden in the great forest he was raised in. How his mother would sing this gently while watching the fish swim in the creek when his father had gone to the city to sell all he had made that fortnight. He wondered what his mother would think of him. He knew his sister would find him fun, his brother would like his ability to sneak things in and out of places. His cousins would find him funny, the little ones would climb all over him like they did to Astra, the older ones probably would find the whole situation amusing, Eva especially with how much she was invested in his love life since they were just children playing in the woods and getting stuck in high trees. Gods, did he miss them all.

“Should he return in poverty  
From o'er the ocean far  
To my tender bosom  
I'll press my jolly tar.

My sailor is as smiling  
As the pleasant light of day  
And often we have wandered  
Through Ratcliffe Highway

Many a pretty blooming  
Young girl we did behold  
Reclining on the bosom  
Of her jolly sailor bold.

My heart is pierced by Cupid  
I disdain all glittering gold  
There is nothing can console me  
But my jolly sailor bold.”

Astra thought of what he would do if he saw him again. All the things he wanted to say, all the things he wanted to do, all the things he wanted to show him. He hoped he would tell him all of what he’s been doing while away, where he’s traveled and what he’s seen while absent from his company. He wanted to hold him close, sing away all trouble and put him at ease. It was a delightful fantasy he had thought of many times, the two of them sat somewhere, usually the bank of the gentle river that flowed near his childhood home, watching the water as Astra sung something soft while the man he dreamed of rested his head on Astra’s shoulder.

“My name it is Maria  
A merchant's daughter fair  
And I have left my parents  
And three thousand gold a year

Come all you pretty fair maids  
Whoever you may be  
Who love a jolly sailor bold  
That plows the raging sea

While up aloft in storm or gale  
From me his absence mourn  
And firmly pray arrive the day  
He home will safe return.

My heart is pierced by Cupid  
I disdain all glittering gold  
There is nothing can console me  
But my jolly sailor bold.”

He had prayed to every God he could think of that would keep him safe at least a dozen times. He had looked out whenever he had heard a storm or heard there was one from another person’s conversation and prayed he wasn’t caught in it, violently tossed into the unforgiving waves of the sea with not a chance of surviving being thrown against jagged rocks at the base of the high cliffs he had seen while travelling. He had to be careful not to worry for him too much when he was around others, for when he did think these thoughts, there was barely anything he could do to stop tears falling, his only comfort the button he kept on him at all times. 

“My heart is pierced by Cupid  
I disdain all glittering gold  
There is nothing can console me  
But my jolly sailor bold.”

The lyrics really were something. They were soft and calming, but haunting and sad, definitely something gorgeous creatures could lure sailors to their deaths with. Astra decided that it was time he went off to his room, he feared he would start crying with how much he longed for all the people he was absent from:  
His friends,  
His family,  
His Jolly Sailor Bold.

**Author's Note:**

> I had to change a few lyrics to make sense with the universe, but I mostly just wrote it from how I was taught it when I was little, so please don't attack me for knowing a different version than you


End file.
